Turnaround
by SomeoneFromSomewhere
Summary: Sabaku no Gaara was once a killing machine. Uzumaki Naruto showed him the error of his ways. Now he was completely different. Random Drabble. Short One-Shot


Sabaku no Gaara had no choice.

Even before he was born he was already damned. Of all the people who could do it, it was his father who sealed his fate.

He would prefer power over the love of his youngest son. Anyway, the Yondaime Kazekage has two other kids who can love him as a father.

He would prefer to make his youngest son the ultimate weapon of Suna. He had already planned it from the start. He wanted Gaara to be the Jinchuuriki of the Ichibi no Shukaku.

He didn't listen to the objections of Karura, his wife. He would rather listen to what the council and his own instinct wanted.

The Kazekage made Chiyo in charge of the sealing ceremony. They decided to sacrifice Karura's life to seal Shukaku to Gaara. As she died, she cursed Suna for what the Kazekage had done…

Gaara was forfeited of the chance to have a mother…

His father had trained him to use Shukaku correctly. But their contact is just to that extent.

The Kazekage never really saw Gaara as his own son.

Just like any other kid, he wanted company. He wanted to play with the other children. He wanted to be like them.

But he was shunned, hated and ostracized…

All because the Shukaku was in him… It was something that was beyond his control to change…

Aside from the ability to control sand and Shukaku inside him, he had almost nothing, and no one loves and cares for him, there came his uncle Yashamaru.

He taught Gaara something that his own father will never teach.

Love… Hurt… Pain… _Healing…_

At least there was someone who loves and takes care of him… Or so he thought.

What he hated the most is to be betrayed. And that was what Yashamaru exactly did.

It was a façade, after all.

The person who Gaara thought would look after him was the one who actually wanted to see him dead. Again, just because he was the Jinchuuriki of Shukaku…

He was blamed for something that he didn't do…

_Why… Me?_

His father has sent numerous assassins to kill him because he now sees Gaara as a failed experiment and a threat to his village. But Yashamaru?

Gaara learned that his own father ordered Yashamaru to kill him.

But he could just not die. Shukaku protected him from harm…

As Yashamaru lay dead on the floor later, Gaara knew what his purpose is…

To kill… to prove his existence… to prove his strength…

No one loves him. Gaara didn't care…

At least he loves himself, and ONLY himself…

He would eventually go to the Chuunin Exams in Konoha to help in the invasion.

That event would be a fateful one, as the following events led him to confront Uzumaki Naruto…

That would be his turning point…

Naruto let him know something that what his heart secretly wants to know. He taught Gaara the source of true strength.

It is from the desire to protect your close friends…

That changed Gaara. He realized that despite of all the power that he had, he was still weak…

To make up for what he did before. He vowed to protect the people of Suna. He wanted to serve them. That was his way to let them appreciate him, to see him as Gaara, not as Shukaku…

That's why he wanted to become Kazekage.

He would eventually become one, a hopeful sign that the people put their trust in him to keep them safe…

And he made sure that he didn't fail them. As the Akatsuki attacked Suna in an attempt to capture him, Gaara did all he can to avoid his own people to be killed…

Before, he only loved himself. Now, he loved the people of Suna. He was devoted to him…

Despite all of his efforts, Gaara was captured. Shikaku was extracted, and consequently, he died.

Everyone in Suna mourned as soon as they found out about his death.

Chiyo, the one who sealed Shukaku in him, gave up her live to bring Gaara back to life.

As he stood up, he saw the people around him cheering and smiling.

"We appreciate what you've done to us, Gaara."

Gaara got what he wanted. Now that he's given a second chance to live, he'll give it a fresh start…

Shukaku is no more in Gaara, the people no has no reason to hate him in the first place…

He will only kill if he has to, and only to save others…

He will now devote his time to make friends and form bonds…

He was now praised…

And the path that he was in now was completely his choice…


End file.
